This series is so frickin' cute. I clearly need to read more josei, where the characters are adults.This series is so frickin' cute. I clearly need to read more josei, where the characters are adults....more
All those words — dead ones and the ones that weren’t quite dead but that nobody ever used anymore — were stored in Great-grandpa’s head. He was alway
All those words — dead ones and the ones that weren’t quite dead but that nobody ever used anymore — were stored in Great-grandpa’s head. He was always wanting to throw out old crockery or toys they didn’t use anymore, yet he kept all the old useless words in the drawers of his brain, never letting them go.
Light on plot, but very heavy on Feelings, imo. Review to come....more
Ito Junji has never disappointed me and this collection is no exception. I know the biggest issue people have with his work is that his endings are abIto Junji has never disappointed me and this collection is no exception. I know the biggest issue people have with his work is that his endings are abrupt or just, you know, don't exist. The fear and suspense just stretch on past the last page with no relief in sight. Marks a successful venture into the horror genre, if you ask me.
As a note: do not pick up his works if you have trypophobia.
I loved the explanations and little anecdotes at the end of each story! It's fascinating to see the mundane things he used as inspiration and the resulting twisted creations we see in Shiver. The only thing that fell a little flat for me was the opening story, "Used Record". It's super difficult to reflect eerie death music with text only, but the harried look of the man pursuing the girl with the record made up for it, a bit.
"Hanging Blimp" was my favorite, for a given value of favorite in this creepy genre.
A truly creepy commentary on body image and how society as a whole has damaged scads of young men and women into believing that their entire wo[image]
A truly creepy commentary on body image and how society as a whole has damaged scads of young men and women into believing that their entire worth is based on their looks. Our main character, Ririko, is a world-famous model who is slowly starting to break down in more ways than one. Her body and her mind are decaying at an accelerated rate, thanks to the dubious experimental cosmetic surgery regimens she takes part in. She rages and seduces and cries and is very, very cruel to her assistant, the only one who is even moderately close to her. Ririko is a goddamn mess.
"... it did seem that the thing we are most proud of and the thing we are most ashamed of are but the front and back of the same coin. They torture an"... it did seem that the thing we are most proud of and the thing we are most ashamed of are but the front and back of the same coin. They torture and thrill all at once."
I suppose it would have been too on-the-nose to call this book Monstrous instead....more
"Having played to her heart's content, Chibi would come inside and rest for a while. When she began to sleep on the sofa - like a talisman c3.5 stars.
"Having played to her heart's content, Chibi would come inside and rest for a while. When she began to sleep on the sofa - like a talisman curled gently in the shape of a comma and dug up from a prehistorical archaeological site - a deep sense of happiness arrived, as if the house itself had dreamed this scene."
"Would it surprise you if I left?" she asked at last. "I suppose it would if you just disappeared. I'm sure I'd worry." "But you wouldn't come looking f
"Would it surprise you if I left?" she asked at last. "I suppose it would if you just disappeared. I'm sure I'd worry." "But you wouldn't come looking for me?" Yoshiki thought for a moment. "Probably not," he said, putting the headphones back over his ears to show that the conversation was over.
Ennui and finding your purpose as corpse disposal: a novel. ...more
This is even cuter than I was led to believe! Despite their classmate's assumptions that they would be a "weird couple", Hori and Miyamura have such gThis is even cuter than I was led to believe! Despite their classmate's assumptions that they would be a "weird couple", Hori and Miyamura have such great chemistry because they can be honest with each other right from the start. Their interactions often trade off from being unbearably adorable:
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to strangely hilarious:
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Also, enjoy a bonus kitty!Miyamura omake because it is incredibly cute and it makes me happy.
This is ridiculous and adorable. Kanoko sees herself as a sort of anthropologist in her little world of high school students, but she is hilariously sThis is ridiculous and adorable. Kanoko sees herself as a sort of anthropologist in her little world of high school students, but she is hilariously short-sighted in many ways. Her observations can be both accurate and myopic. Kanoko's interactions with her peers and teachers provide laughs nearly every panel.